Friday 30 July 2010 12.48 EDT
First published on Friday 30 July 2010 12.48 EDT

Jenson Button has said he would quit Formula One if team orders were reintroduced to the sport. The reigning world champion was referring to Bernie Ecclestone's comments this week when the sport's commercial rights holder said team principals should be allowed to make their own decisions in the wake of the Ferrari one-two at Hockenheim last Sunday when Felipe Massa was instructed to let Fernando Alonso past into the lead.

"I wouldn't be interested in racing in F1 if, from the first race, you know there was the possibility of being a No1 or No2 driver. What's the point?" Button said. "You're here to win, to be the best, and you should have equal opportunity to the guy that's driving the same car. He should also get every opportunity, otherwise it's not a drivers' sport any more, it would be a complete and utter team sport.

"Formula One is a team sport, but when you cross the finishing line you are the person who wins the drivers' championship. We have the constructors' and we have the drivers', and that's the way Formula One is. So for me, if it wasn't down to the individual, I wouldn't be interested in racing any more.

"One of the biggest buzzes in F1 is fighting your team-mate, and for me, fighting a world champion is such a buzz. If I suddenly realised he didn't have the same equipment as me, or I was being favoured, then I wouldn't be happy because I would think we'd all been cheated."

Button said he was aware that letting team-mates race can damage a title bid but is convinced it is the right way to go. "Sometimes it can hurt you having two drivers fighting for a championship," he said. "But also it can help because you are pushing each other very hard and developing the car quicker because you are working together. So there are positives and negatives to having two fast guys in the team.

"We all want to win the championship and when you cross the line you want to know you've done the best job you possibly can and the team has done the best job they possibly can. When you cross the line you want to know you've won a race and a championship in the right way"

Yesterday Button and his McLaren team-mate, Lewis Hamilton, were more than a second off the pace after the first day of practice at the Hungaroring. Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel was nearly half a second quicker than Alonso's Ferrari with their respective team-mates, Mark Webber and Massa in third and fourth.

"A solid result is all we are looking for," Hamilton said. "We are here to win but if we can get a solid result with good points, or just continue the consistency we've shown so far, we can come back after the break and attack again."

After race Formula One goes into a three-week break before the Belgian grand prix and Button and Hamilton will be hoping to protect their lead in the championship by scoring well here. On the evidence of today's running, fifth place looks to be the best they can hope for.